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While ESL instructors provide the information and context of the English language, that alone may not always be effective for some students. Rather than continuing to simply provide them information in hopes they will permanently retain it, they need an opportunity to use their newly acquired English-speaking skills in the real world. This can be accomplished through an incorporation of social learning into any ESL curriculum.

by exposing students who are learning English to a world outside the classroom, they have the chance to interact with other people in a variety of social settings. Building confidence in their English speaking skills will build their eagerness to learn more. The goal of this method is, ideally, when they are done with school, they can go out on their own and thrive in an English-speaking society and communicate effectively in person, on the phone, and through email and social networks.

Engagement is such a hot topic in education, I thought this was a great idea for educators to follow the lead. So, here it goes: 26 Keys to Student Engagement.

There are different levels of fluency. At the very least, being “fluent” means being able to communicate well enough to take care of daily tasks, including shopping, ordering food, communicating with drivers, getting medical care, etc. That’s a lot different, for example, than being fluent in the business lingo of your target language. To keep focused, and motivated, define your fluency goals based on your own needs. Then, when you reach a fluency goal, congratulate yourself on a job well done. After that, if you so desire, make a new fluency goal. Doing this will give you motivational “victories” in what can otherwise seem like a never-ending conquest.

Cheat sheets have a bad rap as a way for students to succeed on tests without actually knowing the information, but now it’s time for them to have a more positive place in education. Cheat sheets can offer a succinct way for students to study their lessons and provide an excellent boost to what you are already teaching them in class. Cheat sheets can provide helpful information for teachers too. Browse through this selection to find cheat sheets for a variety of subjects.

We developed these free resources to provide teachers with high-quality resources online, so you can spend less time searching and more time doing what you do best -- helping your students! Let us know what else you would like to see here.

Connect your favorite courses to relevant learning resources. Exchange knowledge and information with other members whose academic interests match yours. Join peers and professors in exploring the newest academic frontier: free online courses.

This is Meena. She’s 17 years old. She’s a student in Balkh province in northern Afghanistan. Meena is also one of the 687 Afghan students interviewed for Oxfam’s new report, High Stakes: Girls’ Education in Afghanistan, published today. Since the fall of the Taliban, girls’ enrolment in education has increased from an estimated 5,000 under the Taliban, to a current total of 2.4 million girls. Obviously, this is a significant gain, but there’s still a long way to go.

There are so many different types of quizzes that you can give. From multiple choices, essays and extended responses, there are so many examples. Here are a few quiz makers that will easily let you put your students’ knowledge to the test!

For decades, Bloom's Taxonomy has helped teachers plan lessons and design instruction. When Benjamin Bloom and a team of educators first conceived the classification in the late 1940's, they probably never imagined the impact their work would have over 50 years later. While other theories and systems have come and gone, Bloom's taxonomy appears to have become the most commonly used standard in many educational settings. In the 1990's, Lorin Anderson and a group of psychologists updated the taxonomy in the hope that it would have more relevance for 21st century students and teachers, transforming the nouns to verbs and making some other seemingly small but significant changes. An interesting account of the history of Bloom's Taxonomy can be found here. The Blooming Butterfly poster was designed by the Learning Today product development team as a tribute to Bloom and Anderson and to the educators all over the world that continue to implement their vision. We hope that it will serve as a visual reminder for teachers as they continue to guide students to become better thinkers, just as Bloom imagined many years ago!

This post will attempt to give a very brief overview of diagnostic, formative, and summative assessments, how they can be used to inform instruction and how to implement them in the classroom.

The tragic events in Japan have offered many teachable moments. From understanding nuclear reactors to earthquakes to tsunamis, there are countless lessons you can use in the classroom. Here are just a few.

Today, all of the sophomores and juniors in my school are taking the PSAT. That got me thinking about some of the many resources designed to help students learn PSAT and SAT vocabulary that I've come across over the last few years. Here are five resources worth checking out.

Vocab Ahead is a great service offering hundreds of videos designed to help students learn SAT and ACT vocabulary words.

Bubba Brain is a simple site packed with review games for students preparing for the SAT and AP exams.

Ask a student to demonstrate a dance, and assist the student in explaining the movements in English.

Ask students to name as many objects in the classroom as they can while you write them on the board.

Ask your students if there are any songs running through their heads today. If anyone says yes, encourage the student to sing or hum a little bit, and ask the others if they can identify it.